List of prime ministers of the United Kingdom by length of tenure
20 years and 314 days:
Robert Walpole (1721–1742)
Robert Walpole (1721–1742)
144 days:
Lord Goderich (1827–1828)
Lord Goderich (1827–1828)
119 days:
George Canning (1827)
George Canning (1827)
2 years, 159 days:
Boris Johnson (2019–present)
Boris Johnson (2019–present)
This article lists each prime minister of the United Kingdom in order of term length. This is based on the difference between dates; if counted by number of calendar days all the figures would be one greater.
Of the 55 prime ministers, nine served more than 10 years while seven have served less than a year.
Robert Walpole is the only person to have served as Prime Minister for more than two decades. George Canning served for less than four months before his death.
Ordered by tenure[]
In this table, "Terms in office" is the number of separate, discontiguous periods served as Prime Minister.
| Rank | Prime Minister | Length served | Terms in office | Party | Start |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sir Robert Walpole | 20 years, 314 days | 1 | Whig | 1721 |
| 2 | William Pitt the Younger | 18 years, 343 days | 2 | Tory (Pittite) | 1783 |
| 3 | The Earl of Liverpool | 14 years, 305 days | 1 | Tory (Pittite) | 1812 |
| 4 | The Marquess of Salisbury | 13 years, 252 days | 3 | Conservative | 1885 |
| 5 | William Ewart Gladstone | 12 years, 126 days | 4 | Liberal | 1868 |
| 6 | Lord North | 12 years, 58 days | 1 | Tory (Northite) | 1770 |
| 7 | Margaret Thatcher | 11 years, 208 days | 1 | Conservative | 1979 |
| 8 | Henry Pelham | 10 years, 191 days | 1 | Whig | 1743 |
| 9 | Tony Blair | 10 years, 56 days | 1 | Labour | 1997 |
| 10 | The Viscount Palmerston | 9 years, 141 days | 2 | Whig / Liberal | 1855 |
| 11 | H. H. Asquith | 8 years, 244 days | 1 | Liberal | 1908 |
| 12 | Sir Winston Churchill | 8 years, 239 days | 2 | Conservative | 1940 |
| 13 | Harold Wilson | 7 years, 279 days | 2 | Labour | 1964 |
| 14 | The Duke of Newcastle | 7 years, 205 days | 2 | Whig | 1754 |
| 15 | Stanley Baldwin | 7 years, 82 days | 3 | Conservative | 1923 |
| 16 | Benjamin Disraeli | 6 years, 339 days | 2 | Conservative | 1868 |
| 17 | Ramsay MacDonald | 6 years, 289 days | 2 | Labour / National Labour | 1924 |
| 18 | Harold Macmillan | 6 years, 281 days | 1 | Conservative | 1957 |
| 19 | The Viscount Melbourne | 6 years, 255 days | 2 | Whig | 1834 |
| 20 | Sir John Major | 6 years, 155 days | 1 | Conservative | 1990 |
| 21 | Clement Attlee | 6 years, 92 days | 1 | Labour | 1945 |
| 22 | David Cameron | 6 years, 63 days | 1 | Conservative | 2010 |
| 23 | Lord John Russell | 6 years, 11 days | 2 | Whig / Liberal | 1846 |
| 24 | David Lloyd George | 5 years, 317 days | 1 | Liberal | 1916 |
| 25 | Sir Robert Peel | 5 years, 57 days | 2 | Conservative | 1834 |
| 26 | The Earl of Derby | 3 years, 280 days | 3 | Conservative | 1852 |
| 27 | Edward Heath | 3 years, 259 days | 1 | Conservative | 1970 |
| 28 | The Earl Grey | 3 years, 229 days | 1 | Whig | 1830 |
| 29 | Arthur Balfour | 3 years, 145 days | 1 | Conservative | 1902 |
| 30 | The Duke of Portland | 3 years, 82 days | 2 | Whig / Tory (Pittite) | 1783 |
| 31 | Henry Addington | 3 years, 54 days | 1 | Tory (Pittite) | 1801 |
| 32 | James Callaghan | 3 years, 29 days | 1 | Labour | 1976 |
| 33 | Theresa May | 3 years, 11 days | 1 | Conservative | 2016 |
| 34 | Neville Chamberlain | 2 years, 348 days | 1 | Conservative | 1937 |
| 35 | The Duke of Wellington | 2 years, 320 days | 2 | Tory | 1828 |
| 36 | Gordon Brown | 2 years, 318 days | 1 | Labour | 2007 |
| 37 | Spencer Perceval | 2 years, 221 days | 1 | Tory (Pittite) | 1809 |
| 38 | Boris Johnson | 2 years, 159 days (incumbent) | 1 | Conservative | 2019 |
| 39 | Henry Campbell-Bannerman | 2 years, 122 days | 1 | Liberal | 1905 |
| 40 | George Grenville | 2 years, 85 days | 1 | Whig (Grenvillite) | 1763 |
| 41 | The Earl of Chatham | 2 years, 76 days | 1 | Whig (Chathamite) | 1766 |
| 42 | The Earl of Aberdeen | 2 years, 42 days | 1 | Peelite | 1852 |
| 43 | Sir Anthony Eden | 1 year, 279 days | 1 | Conservative | 1955 |
| 44 | The Earl of Wilmington | 1 year, 119 days | 1 | Whig | 1742 |
| 45 | The Marquess of Rockingham | 1 year, 113 days | 2 | Whig (Rockinghamite) | 1765 |
| 46 | The Earl of Rosebery | 1 year, 109 days | 1 | Liberal | 1894 |
| 47 | The Duke of Grafton | 1 year, 106 days | 1 | Whig (Chathamite) | 1768 |
| 48 | The Lord Grenville | 1 year, 42 days | 1 | Whig | 1806 |
| 49 | Sir Alec Douglas-Home | 363 days | 1 | Conservative (Scot. Unionist) | 1963 |
| 50 | The Earl of Bute | 317 days | 1 | Tory | 1762 |
| 51 | The Earl of Shelburne | 266 days | 1 | Whig (Chathamite) | 1782 |
| 52 | The Duke of Devonshire | 225 days | 1 | Whig | 1756 |
| 53 | Bonar Law | 211 days | 1 | Conservative (Scot. Unionist) | 1922 |
| 54 | The Viscount Goderich | 144 days | 1 | Tory (Canningite) | 1827 |
| 55 | George Canning | 119 days | 1 | Tory (Canningite) | 1827 |
See also[]
- List of Leaders of the Opposition of the United Kingdom by length of tenure
- List of prime ministers of the United Kingdom
- List of prime ministers of the United Kingdom by age
- List of prime ministers of Australia by time in office
- List of prime ministers of Canada by time in office
- List of prime ministers of New Zealand by time in office
- William Pulteney, 1st Earl of Bath (sometimes listed as a prime minister; held office for 2 days in 1746)
- James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave (sometimes listed as a prime minister; held office for 4 days in 1757)
External links[]
- "Past Prime Ministers". gov.uk. Government of the United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 25 August 2008.
Categories:
- Lists of people by time in office
- Lists of prime ministers of the United Kingdom